The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Piezoceramic based motors, actuators and energy harvesters are rapidly gaining popularity for diverse applications where either energy harvesting is performed, or where the use of a piezoceramic element is being used to control movement of another element, for example an actuator.
The following United States patents, all owned by the Boeing Company, are directed to piezoelectric technology and/or piezoelectric controlled devices, and all are hereby incorporated by reference into the present disclosure: U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,894,460; 6,858,970; 6,563,250; 6,307,301; 6,265,810; and 6,320,707.
One limitation with bimorph piezoceramic beams employed in energy harvesting and various control applications is the inherent stiffness of the piezoceramic material. This stiffness must be overcome before a piezoceramic beam is able to vibrate. This limitation tends to make a piezoceramic beam less sensitive to small amplitudes of vibration energy, and also tends to limit the displacement of a free end of the beam in response to vibration energy, or in response to an electrical signal applied to the piezoceramic beam.